Milo and the Big Six
by NanobotEX
Summary: Eight long years have passed since Milo and Amaya's breakout Rookie season. Now one of them is a Champion, while the other is the biggest Pokémon battling celebrity on the planet. The winds of life blow much more harshly at the top of the world, though. New foes with old faces, friendships built and broken, and impossible choices...It's time for the World Challenge.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 - The Board is Set

Kara settled with a smile into her VIP box seat under the bright lights of the Sunyshore Arena, waiting along with tens of thousands of other spectators for the evening's marquee battle to begin. It had been a very long week, but today marked the end of the International Masters Exhibition Tour, affectionately known as the Hype Circuit.

The purpose of the Hype Circuit was to advertise for the World Challenge, a massive, international tournament that took place every other year. To get people excited about seeing the world's best Trainers in action, the biggest names from the biggest leagues all traveled together for a week and put on a series of exhibition battles to get 'warmed up' and perhaps garner a few new fans with flashy victories. Champions, Elite Four, notable Gym Leaders, anyone who qualified as a major battling celebrity was invited, and those with no prior obligations usually came, at least for one or two days. This was the Hype Circuit.

There was nothing riding on the results, just pure entertainment. Now they had come to the final battle of the last day; the culmination of all the anticipation.

"Feeling the excitement yet?" asked Cynthia with a grin as she situated herself next to the Performer. The two women had built a rather refreshing friendship over the years. Cynthia herself had participated in the Hype Circuit earlier in the week, when her busy Champion's schedule would allow. She'd been solid, as always, with two wins from two fights. She'd beaten Lt. Surge of Vermillion City with ease, before a much closer victory against Steven Stone, Champion of Hoenn.

"It'd be hard not to," responded Kara, "Though I still wish he wasn't so selective about his matchups. Imagine if it were you or Lance down there facing him. Now _that_ would be quite the conclusion for the Hype Circuit."

As the crowd began working itself to frenzy, dying to see the last battle begin, Cynthia gave a chuckle;

"Normally I'd agree, but his is a unique case. He's not afraid to _lose_ to a Champion, he's afraid he might _win_. Besides, this promises to be quite the thrilling matchup as well."

Kara looked askance at the Sinnoh Champion's odd assertion, but didn't have time to question her about it. At last, the first of the two combatants had walked out to take his side of the field. A sharply dressed man who looked quite young for his early thirties, wearing a slick black button-down shirt under an open black blazer with brick red pants and black dress shoes stepped forward with cool confidence.

Marcus, Gym Leader of Hearthome and world-renowned Dark type specialist, strode easily into his box, acknowledging the crowd's raucous cheers with a small wave and a cool grin.

"WOOHOO!" A wild cheer came from just a couple rows behind Kara and Cynthia, "Go do it, you crazy hunk! If you lose, you're sleeping on the couch tonight!"

Performer and Champion alike found this hilarious;

"Now that seems harsh", Kara laughed, "You'd make your husband sleep on the couch just for losing an exhibition battle? For shame, Gardenia!"

The former Leader of Eterna (she'd retired and moved to Hearthome after the birth of their son) answered without hesitation;

"I wouldn't care if it was against anybody else, but there's no way I'd let him lose _this_ battle and get away with it!"

The aforementioned son, little Martin, was currently being entertained by his young Aunt Myrian a few seats away, but took a moment to glance down towards the field. His three-year-old face lit up and he began bouncing around in his seat and pointing;

"Daddy! Look, Mommy, look! Daddy battle!"

Gardenia smiled at her son and nodded fervently;

"That's right, buddy! Daddy is going to have a battle! Let's cheer for Daddy, okay?"

Overcome with excitement, Marcus' son leaned a bit too far forward and almost fell out of his seat. Luckily, he was rescued by his grandmother. Zoe couldn't resist her adorable grandson;

"Come here, little Martin, sit with grandma. Let's cheer your Daddy on together, okay? Can you say 'go, Daddy, go'?"

"Daddy go!"

As the young Martin enchanted those around him with the charms only a child could provide, Marcus' opponent had been duly hyped up by the announcer, and now he emerged from the other side of the Sunyshore Arena. The noise for Marcus had been quite loud, but now Zoe actually covered her grandson's young ears; the bellow from the crowd at the second competitor's arrival was downright deafening.

Marcus' opponent was a good six or seven years younger than the Hearthome Leader. His short, dark, unruly hair shifted easily in the light breeze. His t-shirt was white on top, fading to black at the bottom, and his black cargo pants cut off at the shins. His name was printed in stark, imposing letters across the back of his shirt, like a jersey, but nobody needed it to identify him on sight.

Everybody knew Milo.

"Come on Milo!" It was Kara's turn to stand and cheer for her boyfriend of eight years, "You got this! I know you won't lose!"

In many ways, this battle was the most exciting of the Hype Circuit; not only was it a sibling grudge match, but Milo was riding a two-year competitive win streak, stretching all the way back to his loss in the last World Challenge. Since then, the young star had redoubled his efforts, taken on all comers, and emerged victorious time and again. Could his older brother be the one to finally best him?

 **Milo**

He stepped into his box and pulled a Pokéball from his belt. He released Azura, not onto the field but beside him in his box. The iconic Trainer-Pokémon duo took in the screams of delight with practiced confidence.

 _Feeling good?_ The shiny Umbreon looked up at her Trainer, having no trouble reading him after eight years together.

 _Yeah_ , he replied casually, _I only brought you and Ferra as insurance, so this should be basically a workout for the second tier against his main lineup. Should be fairly even._

 _Ah_ , the Dark-type nodded understandingly, _Ferra gets to deal with Absol, then? She'll enjoy that._

 _I think so_ , he answered with a grin. He hadn't really been paying attention, but evidently the referee had finished explaining the rules and they were ready to get the battle started. Milo caught Marcus smirking and gave him a curt nod in return. The older brother raised an arm and called;

"Let's make this interesting. Spiritomb, you're up first!"

"Alright", Milo smirked, "Looks like I've got you figured pretty well after all. Nina, time to work!"

One of Milo's 'second tier' Pokémon, a Whimsicott, shot out of her Pokéball like a rocket.

 _WHEEEHEEEE!_

Nina, always insanely energetic, zipped all around the battlefield twice before settling in front of Milo, ready to battle;

 _I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm SO ready!_

 _Okay, time to be serious, Nina_ , he coached her mentally, _We're going to focus on landing Moonblast attacks since that thing is half-Dark, okay?_

 _Moonblast, got it! I'll whack him up good!_

"He's too slow for you, Nina", called Milo aloud, "Go for it! Moonblast!"

"Shadow Sneak, Spiritomb!"

Unfortunately for the Ghost, Milo was correct. Spiritomb was naturally one of the slowest Pokémon around, and Whimsicott were among the fastest. Spiritomb was halfway done launching its attack when Nina's Moonblast came in from behind and sent it spinning painfully.

"Alright, then Pursuit!"

Milo had to think fast, but that was his specialty.

"Nina, to me! Then turn and hit him again!"

The Pursuit would have smashed into Nina's unsuspecting back, but at her Trainer's command, she zipped forward, turned around, and had a Moonblast ready to go by the time her slower opponent emerged. Things weren't looking good for the Forbidden Pokémon, but not everything was as it seemed.

"Why isn't Marcus switching?" Myrian asked Cynthia, as she could see no way back into the battle for the Leader's first Pokémon, "I mean, the type matchup is bad, and the speed difference is worse. Why not save Spiritomb for later and use something else against Nina?"

Cynthia frowned for a moment, her brows furrowed;

"You know, I'm wondering that myself. I've always been terrible at following Marcus' thought process. His out-of-the-box stuff can really throw me for a loop…"

After another few seconds of consideration, during which time Spiritomb took another Moonblast to the face, Cynthia tossed out a suggestion;

"My best guess it that he's relying on the other natural differences between these two to even things out. Spiritomb are very strong defensively, and Whimsicott aren't known for their attack power."

Gardenia heard their discussion and chimed in with a thought of her own,

"Marcus is either trying to wear Nina down by tanking a bunch of hits, or he's just buying time to think and hoping to confuse Milo in the process. I guess we'll see before too long."

"Alright", called Marcus, seemingly undaunted by the super effective hits raining down on his Pokémon, "Hang tough, Spiritomb, and show me a Shock Wave!"

"Tank it, Nina, and blow him away!"

Milo's Whimsicott wasn't nearly as sturdy as her opponent, but she was able to withstand the Shock Wave attack before launching a Hurricane in response. Marcus was clearly expecting more hit and run tactics and wasn't prepared to deal with this new strategy. As Spiritomb was flung into the air, Milo prepared to capitalize;

"Perfect, Nina, now snipe him!"

"Spiritomb, evade with Shadow Sneak!"

The Forbidden Pokémon did its best, but once again it was helpless against Nina's raw speed. She never stood still for more than a split second, and Spiritomb took at least three more Moonblast attacks that seemed to come from everywhere as it spun painfully through the air.

"Alright, now finish him, Nina!"

On a desperate whim, Marcus yelled;

"Dark Pulse, straight down!"

He'd figured on Milo's Whimsicott going for the direct, stylish approach to a guaranteed victory, and he was right. Nina dashed into place directly underneath the falling Ghost, preparing for one last Moonblast, only to be met by a predictive Dark Pulse to the face. She wasn't down, but she was certainly worse for wear after taking her second sizeable hit. Spiritomb, on the other hand, hit the ground hard and was at last knocked out.

"Well, I never thought it would be easy", said Marcus, "My team's got plenty left in the tank. Houndoom, let's go!"

Houndoom was a staple of the Leader's team, and Milo knew this would be one of the most telling sections of the battle. The quicker he could get through his brother's aptly named Dark Pokémon, the better his team would fare against the much stronger Absol that was surely still to come.

 _Nina, you think you can stay?_

Milo's Whimsicott stared coolly at the Fire type facing her, and replied easily;

 _Yup, I can take him, no problem! Leave it to me, Milo! Whoo, this is fun!_

With that, the excitable half-Fairy was off again, zipping here and there and everywhere around the field.

"Keep your cool, Houndoom", Marcus warned, "this thing is fast, but fragile."

"Whenever you're ready, Nina, give him a Moonblast!"

"Now, Houndoom! Behind you!"

Houndoom was alert to the danger, and experienced enough to handle this situation with aplomb. As soon as Marcus gave the signal, the Dark type whipped around in place and spewed the biggest Flamethrower he could straight into the unfortunate Whimsicott.

 _That's the second time that's happened_ , Milo noted, _Nina's got the speed, but her positioning is still too predictable. We'll work on that before the World Challenge. She has to learn to be one extra step ahead._

Milo could see that after taking the Shock Wave and Dark Pulse in the last round, that high-powered Flamethrower was just about enough to knock her out. The brave Windveiled Pokémon tried to get back up with a grimace, but Milo had already made the call;

"Nina, return. You did a great job."

He signaled the referee that the half-Fairy was officially done battling, and grabbed his next Pokéball. It was another new member of his team, one he was rather proud of;

"Alright, Lithos. Time for you to shine."

Milo's Kabutops was discipline incarnate. He valued absolute adherence to Milo's every whim as his utmost virtue. He had perfected the art of predicting and reading Milo's commands almost as well as his Trainer's main team of Pokémon; the world-famous 'Big Six'. He lacked their raw power, of course, and their ability to improvise within the plan, but he was coming along very well indeed.

 _Plan?_

"Don't give him time to think."

 _Understood_.

Without any further instruction he jumped in close, sidestepping the attempted Crunch counterattack to land a Slash to Houndoom's side.

"Back off!" Marcus wanted to break his brother's stride, but Milo had already called;

"Lead him!"

Houndoom jumped away as fast as he could, but Milo's powers of prediction were too good. Lithos understood exactly what was going on, and a Bubblebeam followed the Fire type and hit him almost before he was done moving.

"Aqua Jet", called Milo, knowing Houndoom would take a second or two to get up. The Dark Pokémon scrambled to the side, out of Aqua Jet's path, but Lithos was ready for this as well. This was a textbook training move he'd run hundreds of times.

As though Houndoom's escape was written in a script somewhere, Lithos cancelled his Aqua Jet and launched a Mud Shot that left Marcus' Fire type on his last legs.

"Flamethrower!"

"Stone Edge. Aqua Jet."

Another relatively simple move. The Kabutops' Stone Edge both nullified the Flamethrower and obscured the Rock type from view for a crucial couple of seconds. The overwhelmed Houndoom saw the second Aqua Jet attack coming in from his flank, but it was too late to do anything but brace himself. With one last massive hit, he went down.

The crowd was in ecstasy at Milo's genius display of lightning-fast offense. Up in the crowd, his father, Alexander, nodded slowly;

"He made that one look easy, but Marcus usually handles those changes in pace much better."

"You're right", Cynthia had just about managed to decipher the astronomical level of psychological warfare going on between the two brothers, "but Milo found his weak point. Kabutops and Houndoom were more or less equal in terms of power and speed, and type advantage alone isn't enough to beat Marcus."

"It should've looked like a closer fight then", said Kara as Marcus paused below to consider his next move.

"True, but all of Marcus' 'miracle plays' come when he can find a break – even a small one – to put them together in his head. Milo cut away his thinking time, and Marcus was forced to play it one step at a time like anyone else. He's still quite a dangerous opponent, but one step at a time is never enough against Milo."

Kara's head was spinning just from Cynthia's explanation, but the mind games were still raging below;

"Absol, you're in!"

"What?" Gardenia was dismayed at this, "Aww, you could've held out a bit longer, Marcus! Two Pokémon down and you're already pressing the panic button? Come on!"

Alexander was never more proud than when he could watch his two sons battle like this on the big stage;

"Aha!" He applauded excitedly, "That's the way, Marcus! I like what you're thinking, boy!"

A questioning look from his wife was enough to elicit an explanation;

"He's throwing off the rhythm of the fight. If he didn't, they would just keep trading knockouts and Milo would get an easy win."

"You know", laughed Zoe as she bounced her grandson on her knee, "that's the kind of thing you would've done, back in the day."

As the battle began below, Absol was steadfastly frustrating Lithos' attempts at clean hit-and-run tactics.

"Back in the day?" Alexander flashed a teasing smile, "Who's to say I haven't still got it?"

"Oh, pardon me", Zoe rolled her eyes, "I forgot I married Alexander the ageless wonder."

"You're darn right!" His rolling laugh was infectious, "I don't care how big a deal they are, I bet me and ol' Gator could still show those boys of mine a thing or two. Nobody outgrows their old man!"

A blast from down below drew their attention, as Lithos was sent flying by a massive Dark Pulse. As tough and disciplined as the Kabutops was, he had no answer for Absol's raw power. He was finding out the hard way just why Absol and Marcus were one of the most dangerous partnerships in all of Pokémon battling. Still, Milo was visibly calm. After all, he and Azura were another such duo, and his famous Umbreon sat patiently in the box beside him, watching every detail as the battle unfolded.

"You'd think Milo would care that his Pokémon is getting knocked around like a rag doll", frowned Myrian. She was almost 14 now. A few years ago, she had moved to Hearthome to train under Marcus at his Dark Gym and, with her incredible instincts, she had quickly become her older brother's star pupil. She was already Marcus' right-hand apprentice; challengers to the Hearthome badge had to get through her before they were given a shot at his Gym team, and her win rate was climbing steadily all the time.

"If I know Milo, he's just testing Lithos", responded Kara without looking away, "If this wasn't in the plan he wouldn't look that relaxed."

She gestured to the field, where a long and laborious shootout had finally ended in Absol's favor. Still unfazed, Milo recalled his fallen Kabutops with a nod.

"Hmm", the hint of a smirk flashed across the younger brother's face, "There's your ace, Marcus. All your cards are on the table. Hunter, let's go."

Hunter was yet another one of Milo's second-tier Pokémon; a Dusk Form Lycanroc. His speed and firepower were not to be underestimated, but…

"Now why would he do that?" Cynthia wondered aloud, "He knows his Lycanroc isn't ready to take down Absol - not yet, at least."

"This feels like part of a larger play", commented Kara, "maybe Azura is up next?"

"Hunter, give them a Stealth Rock."

With a menacing snarl, the Wolf Pokémon brought spikes shooting up all around Marcus' half of the battlefield. It was a long-term move, and Marcus was able to punish the opening;

"Now, before he sets up!"

A whopping Dark Pulse came in and struck the vulnerable Hunter, who got up with difficulty.

"Time to get moving, buddy", coached Milo, "Accelerock into Crunch."

At full strength, Absol could easily have anticipated and prevented the Lycanroc's movements, even with the impressive speed of Accelerock. However, the extended bout with Lithos had taken the edge off Absol's reflexes, and he took both attacks.

"Now back off", called Milo to his Rock type, wary of Hunter's flimsy defense.

"No escape, Absol!"

Just as Lithos had done to Houndoom, Absol predicted Hunter's retreat perfectly, and followed him with a Pursuit attack that sent the Lycanroc sprawling.

"Recover, Hunter! Another Accelerock!"

Despite his lack of defensive solidity, Milo's Wolf Pokémon was a consummate competitor. He wasn't as rigidly disciplined as Milo's more experienced fighters, like Lithos, but he had a never-say-die attitude that often overwhelmed opponents who expected him to stay down.

With a snarl, he leapt back at Absol, who had indeed expected him to stay down for at least another couple seconds. It wasn't the biggest of hits, but Milo could tell that the damage was slowly piling up on Marcus' ace.

 _Perfect, Hunter_ , Milo instructed mentally, _Keep at him for as long as you can. Don't let him keep you down._

 _Hah_ , Hunter was panting with exertion, but his grit shone through, _Easier done than said! This punk is – whew – is going down one way or another! C'mon, you!_

The Disaster Pokémon scowling at him from across the field began charging another Dark Pulse, and Milo's Rock type responded instinctively, charging in for another Accelerock hit.

Milo said nothing, opting to let Hunter make his own mistakes and take this as a learning experience. Absol cancelled the fake Dark Pulse and smacked Hunter with a Sucker Punch the second he was within range, just as Milo knew he would. It was enough to send the Dusk Lycanroc sprawling, unconscious at last.

"What a victory!" The announcer was practically frothing at the mouth with excitement, "After a strong start, Milo's team has hit an Absol-shaped brick wall! He now finds himself down by one Pokémon! How will the younger of these two brothers overcome one of Sinnoh's very best?"

From the stands, Gardenia was going wild;

"That's the way, Marcus! Show him who's top dog in this family! Keep him on the ropes!"

"You've got this, Milo!" Kara would not be out-cheered, "I know you have plenty left in the tank! Enough with the warm-up, time to get serious! Send in Azura!"

Interestingly, the only one who didn't seem thrilled by this turn of the tides was Marcus. He was up by one, sure, but his biggest challenge was, as Kara had noted, still sitting in Milo's box, her blue-ringed ears and tail flicking patiently as she watched and waited for her shot.

 _Absol is getting run ragged out here_ , the older brother knew, _and Azura is still fresh. I've already played my hand; I've got nothing left up my sleeve and he knows it. Maybe I should've waited to bring Absol in after all. It's going to be a tough slog from here. Still, I didn't have much choice, did I? Milo's at it again, and now I'll have to take whatever we've got left to deal with Azura._

All eyes in the stadium were turning slowly, expectantly towards the shiny Umbreon, desperate to see Milo's ace take on Marcus' famed Absol. Instead, Milo pulled another Pokéball from his belt and yelled;

"Alright, Ferra, just like we planned!"

At last, Milo had revealed one of his famous Big Six, but it wasn't Azura. There was a sharp intake of breath across the crowd as Milo's masterpiece of strategy at last sunk in. Marcus had planned around beating Azura, only to find that she was nothing more than an incredibly dangerous decoy. Absol was now exhausted, drained, and up against an elite Fighting Pokémon.

The numbers were in Marcus' favor, but the fight had just become Milo's to lose and anyone who could read a battle knew it. Screams and cheers erupted. If the stadium had a roof, it might have blown off. This was _exactly_ the kind of insane mind gaming that made Milo a superstar. This was why people came out in droves to watch him; nobody in the world could match his strategic genius.

 _I'm ready, Papa_ , Milo's Lucario was just as dialed in as her Trainer, shutting out the noise that cascaded down from the spectators, _Let's go._

Marcus, however, wasn't just going to lie down and take it. He narrowed his eyes, set his feet, and sprang into action;

"Dark Pulse!"

"Match and move," Milo responded smoothly, "Then hit and run."

With incredible efficiency, a Dragon Pulse collided with the oncoming Dark attack. Absol's Pulse won out eventually, but Ferra was already long gone, using the explosion as cover to come around for a Force Palm. At close range, the powerful Fighting move was brutally effective, and Absol was left reeling.

"Night Shade!"

Marcus was trying to counter, but Ferra, as Milo had ordered, was already backing off with a Quick Attack to prevent just such a counterattack. Milo had called four perfect commands with that one sentence, and he was far from done.

"Again. Dragon Pulse."

"Pursuit, Absol!"

Pursuit wouldn't do much, but Marcus knew he had to at least chip away at this Lucario to stand any chance.

"Do it."

Both Milo and his Lucario had known precisely how Absol would respond, and were still a step ahead. With unbelievable speed, Ferra once again cancelled her Dragon Pulse, flashed out to the side with a Quick Attack, and was ready with a huge Aura Sphere as Absol emerged for the Pursuit hit. Ferra's Aura Sphere was not a thing to be trifled with. After surviving two previous rounds and now two massive Fighting type hits, Absol was finally spent. He collapsed to the ground, knocked out.

The crowd was absolutely delirious. In the blink of an eye, Milo had leveled the score at three Pokémon each, and his Lucario had decimated Marcus' strongest team member without breaking a sweat. In fact, he'd made beating the strongest Absol in professional battling look downright easy. He was firmly in control of the battle, just as he had intended from the start.

Marcus could scarcely hear his own thoughts over the stadium noise, and was reeling internally from Milo's bait and switch, so he signaled to the referee for a timeout. In high-profile 6-on-6 battles, each Trainer was usually given one timeout call to use any time during the battle as a respite from the grueling action.

The ref caught his motion, and waved the yellow flag in the Leader's direction to signify a timeout had been called.

"Now _that_ ", nodded Gardenia above, "was a veteran move. If he let Milo continue with all that momentum and crowd energy he'd be toast for sure."

 **Milo**

He sat back against the wall in his staging room, perfectly relaxed, waiting idly for the battle to resume. This timeout was the first significant part of the fight so far that he hadn't predicted.

"Figures he'd never let it go all the way to plan, huh?"

 _The timeout call was definitely clever_ , agreed Azura from her comfortable position curled in her Trainer's lap, _Want me to get a few shots in? Build that momentum back?_

Milo chuckled and shook his head;

"Nah, that's alright. You've already done plenty of damage just threatening him from the sidelines. Let Ferra carry the team this time, you know she loves it. Besides, fighting a technical, mental battle like this is a good experience for the others. You two already have this down to a science, but they need to learn."

 _Hmph. Fine_ , Azura sniffed with an air of dissatisfaction.

"Oh, don't start pouting now", Milo grinned, "This whole week has been about getting the second tier some exposure, remember? I'm learning a lot about them here, and I don't want to go all out so close to the World Challenge."

 _You and your mind games_ , Azura nuzzled her Trainer fondly, _Qualification hasn't even started and you're already at it._

"Well sure", he grinned, "That's what I do. You and the rest of the Big Six are going to battle just enough to remind people they should be afraid of you, but no more."

 _Unless we come up against her?_

"Her? Oh, I get you." Milo's grin faded instantly, "Her. Well, in that case we won't have much choice. Still, we'll just have to hope that doesn't happen."

 _If we're going to win the Challenge, someone has to beat her. If not us, then who?_

The Trainer's brows furrowed, and he paused before answering with a sigh;

"Well, maybe Cynthia, but...you're right. Realistically, we'll have to deal with her eventually. Let's just hope we don't match up until late. Hmm? Oh, time's almost up. Let's finish this. Ready?"

 _Ready for what?_ Azura asked pointedly as she stretched and accompanied Milo back to the field, _I don't actually get to battle, remember?_

 _You never know_ , Milo responded silently as he waved to the frenzied crowd, _If Ferra miraculously goes down and I need another trump card, you'd be in._

 _If Ferra goes down? Milo_ , huffed his Umbreon, _We both know that's not happening. Only Absol stood any chance, and we saw how that turned out. Ferra could sweep the rest of this on her own if she wanted to. I'm not battling today._

Milo ruffled his partner's ears with a wink as they took up position together in their Trainer's box, _I think you'll live, Azura. Just sit there and look menacing._

 **Kara**

Back up in the stands, Kara took the chance during the break to ask about something that had been picking at her mind;

"Cynthia", she turned to the veteran battler, "What did you mean earlier about Milo being afraid he might win against a Champion?"

"Honestly", Cynthia answered, "I'm surprised he hasn't explained it to you himself."

"He's tried", Kara waved a dismissive hand, "All I got was that he wasn't interested in the politics of it all. I still think he could just battle you somewhere like this, when it's not an official title challenge. That'd be fine, right?"

"Well, it's not that simple", Cynthia explained patiently, "If he doesn't want to be a Champion because he's not interested in politics, that's a valid concern. As far as battling outside of an official title challenge, that's where it gets tricky. If he beats a Champion but doesn't claim their title, their implied authority as the 'strongest in their region' goes up in smoke."

"That still sounds like an excuse", Kara argued, "because everyone already knows Milo's stronger than at least some Champions."

"Do they?" Cynthia posed the rhetorical question with a knowing grin, "They _suspect_ he's stronger, but without an actual victory to back it up, that's just speculation. The mystique of being 'a Champion' remains intact. For the League to work as it does, we Champions rely heavily on that aura of intangible power to establish our political and social influence and get things done in our regions. Milo can't risk breaking that by defeating a Champion even in a casual battle. If he did, everyone would know that he was more powerful than anyone in that region and the Champion is left with an empty title."

"Well", Kara was still processing all the politics Cynthia had laid out, "I love Milo, but I don't think he has the social wherewithal to work through all that on his own."

"Of course not!" Cynthia laughed aloud, "I was the one who explained it to him in the first place. I'd love to fight him, honestly, and if he asked for a battle behind closed doors, I'd be thrilled. Unfortunately, the political reality is that he just can't risk stripping an entire region of the presumed authority of its figurehead."

"That's some crazy stuff."

"Crazy indeed. As I said, Milo isn't afraid to lose to the Champions - he's afraid of the consequences if he won. I don't mind all that much", she joked, "I mean, if Milo wanted to be a Champion, I'd probably be out a job."

The time had come now for Milo to resume his bout with Marcus. He had been impressed by the power of Marcus' team thus far; he knew Absol's strength beforehand, but Spiritomb and Houndoom had both proved quite capable as well. They'd gone down, of course, but that wasn't a fair estimation of their ability. Even Milo's second tier Pokémon were just too much.

"Alright", called Marcus, "let's get this thing rocking, bro! Honchkrow, time to do some work!"

"Hmm, okay. Tika, this one's yours."

Tika was Milo's Flygon. He was anxious for her to get used to these types of situations, given her naturally shy nature.

 _Oh...I'm up now? A-are you sure?_ She asked softly in her Trainer's mind.

 _Yeah, you got this_ , he gently encouraged his Dragon, _I have complete faith in you._

 _Umm, alright, Milo. I'll do my best._

"Lead with a Sandstorm", called the younger brother.

As the Mystic Pokémon quickly whipped an impressive Sandstorm into effect, Marcus was alert to the danger;

"Quick, Dark Pulse while you can see it!"

"Dodge and counter, Tika."

This was a tactic Milo had gotten used to using with Aurora, the Glaceon member of Milo's Big Six, whose Hail and Snow Cloak served to generate similar problems for her opponents. In this case, Tika slipped easily into the swirling sands before coming in with a Dragon Claw from below the blindsided Honchkrow.

"Don't let it escape!" Marcus' brain was racing a mile a minute as he tried to work out just how he would beat a Flygon in a Sandstorm, "Chase it down! Wing Attack!"

Milo watched closely as a fast-paced round of Meowth-and-Rattata ensued. Tika moved this way and that, perfectly at home diving in and out of the sand streams that swirled about. Honchkrow, to its credit, clung gamely to her trail, never letting the Dragon completely out of sight.

Marcus was calling moves left and right as Honchkrow tried desperately to pin down the slippery Mystic Pokémon, but Milo was silent.

 _She's going to freak out soon if you don't step in_ , commented Azura after two full minutes had gone by.

 _She'll be alright_ , Milo was confident, _I trust her to dodge, and she needs to be able to act independently like this. She needs to work through these nerves, or at least get used to them._

After almost five minutes of what had become an infuriatingly impossible game of chase for the Big Boss Pokémon, Milo decided he'd made his point, and stepped in.

"Tika, you're doing great! Now down, then Rock Slide!"

"Honchkrow, dodge low!"

"There it is, Tika! Pinch with Dragon Rush!"

It was a classic pincer move from Milo, and the still-raging Sandstorm left Marcus and Honchkrow powerless to do anything to stop it. As Honchkrow dodged the first Rock Slide missiles, Tika came barreling out of the sand from below with a Dragon Rush that smashed Marcus' Flying type upward...straight into the rest of the Rock Slide that was still raining down from above.

"She's close, Honchkrow! Turn and Drill Peck!"

In a truly even fight, Marcus would've risked a Brave Bird to make the most of this rare chance to hit Tika. With Azura still waiting, though, he couldn't take unnecessary damage – not when Milo was already dishing it out in spades. He needed to hold out as long as he could.

Thankfully, Honchkrow's alert Drill Peck connected, and Tika gave a pained cry. Instinct grabbed her, and she slipped away immediately into the sand, relying on Milo to guide her next move.

"Okay, Tika, hang in there!"

Milo was taking a much more active role in this round now, for Tika's sake, and he had a strategy ready in a flash.

"Drive him low again, Tika! Dragon Tail and Dragon Claw, keep after him!"

This was not only a clever change of pace, but it was yet another test for Tika. This type of aggressive offense was _not_ her natural style, and Milo had to know she trusted him enough to work through it.

As he watched, his concern turned to pride. Her discomfort was clear, but she still fired move after move right above Honchkrow, forcing the Dark type to dodge closer and closer to the ground. Knowing his brother would catch on soon, Milo played his hand quickly;

"Perfect, now Stone Edge!"

"Honchkrow, UP!"

The Big Boss Pokémon just didn't have the agility. A vicious Stone Edge came flying out of the ground, and scored yet another super effective hit. After being weakened by the previous attacks, and exhausted by the effort of battling through the Sandstorm, Honchkrow went down.

Eyes narrowed, Marcus recalled his fourth fallen team member. He knew he could overcome this stubborn Flygon, but...then he'd have to deal with Ferra _and_ Azura, and Absol was already down. His odds weren't great. Still, he'd never go down without a fight.

"Alright, Milo, let's see your Dragon deal with this! Weavile!"

His moment of triumph was quickly soured as Milo recalled the Mystic Pokémon, letting the Sandstorm subside at last.

"Let's not press our luck, Tika, return. Ferra, you're back in."

 _Hmm, a Weavile_ , noted the Aura Pokémon pointedly to her Trainer.

 _Yep_ , Milo gave a sad smile, _Brings back memories._

Ferra nodded somberly, _It does, Papa. Happy memories, right?_

 _...Let's focus up, girl._

Ferra knew he was avoiding the topic, but she let it drop. Across the field, Marcus had taken the initiative to get the round started;

"Weavile, let's be relentless! Quick Attack!"

Milo just nodded. Ferra knew what to do. As Weavile flashed in, Ferra launched a Bullet Punch in place that crashed into the onrushing Sharp Claw Pokémon's face for big damage.

"Don't worry, Weavile, just keep at it! Revenge!"

"Don't move. Aura Sphere."

Weavile was sent flying again, helpless against the powerful Fighting type move.

Up in the stands, Cynthia chuckled;

"Now that's creative. Myrian," the Sinnoh Champion called the young Gym apprentice over, "See what Milo's up to?"

Always ready to soak up free advice, the girl sidled eagerly down the row of seats to listen;

"Which is naturally faster", prompted Cynthia, "a Lucario, or a Weavile?"

Myrian had the answer in a flash, "Weavile."

"Correct, and by quite a bit. Milo knows that very well, so instead of chasing that Weavile down, he's forcing Marcus to come to him and relying on counterattacks."

"Oh…" Myrian's eyes glazed over as she mulled this strategy over, "I guess Ferra's got a huge type advantage, too. Fighting over Ice and Dark, and Steel over Ice again."

As they discussed, Milo and Ferra were implementing their strategy to devastating effect. Weavile couldn't get close enough to hit Ferra without opening itself up to her devastatingly powerful counterattacks.

"Very good, Myrian", it was easy to see why Cynthia was renowned for her teaching abilities, "Can you see why this is so effective against Weavile in particular?"

"Their defense is naturally weak."

"Close, but no. Weavile aren't very defensive, it's true, but this actually works because Weavile are primarily physical attackers, so Marcus has to get in close to do any real damage. He can't strike from long distance with enough power to trouble Ferra at all."

"Wow", Myrian's eyes were wide as she looked again at the one-sided battle going on below them, "and Milo knew all that in a split second...He's planned this."

"Yes", chuckled Cynthia, "In a way that only he could. However, if there's anyone who could outthink him, it's Marcus. Watch your brothers carefully, Myrian, they're both exceptional Trainers."

On the field, Weavile had taken an absolute beating, but Ferra was still standing stock still, in exactly the same place where she'd started.

Chest heaving, Weavile paused for a moment to glare angrily at his unflappable opponent. Milo's self-appointed 'daughter' smirked confidently back, showing no sign of exertion, and Marcus urged his fighter onward;

"Come on, Weavile, we can still make something happen here! Dark Pulse!"

"Dragon Pulse", answered Milo immediately, "Just block."

"Now Night Slash", Marcus called. It was a move right out of Milo's playbook – fake a Dark Pulse to make room for a real attack.

"Metal Claw. Block again."

Calmly, Ferra cancelled her own attack and had a Metal Claw ready to deflect Weavile's next Dark attack, until Marcus pulled one last trick;

"Now Pursuit! Then Assurance!"

"Away, then Aura Sphere!"

It was so, _so_ close. For the first time in the round, Ferra was forced to move from her starting position. As Milo's command came in, the disciplined Lucario sprang into a Quick Attack to get away from the incoming Pursuit. She escaped, but it was a matter of centimeters at most. As Weavile slowed, shocked that his attack hadn't connected, Ferra did a sharp 180 and fired an Aura Sphere into his face.

He went down, unconscious. Milo was up 3-1.

"Well", Myrian crossed her arms and nodded, "If it wasn't over before, it is now."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow at the girl with a knowing grin, and the Gym trainee elaborated;

"I know Marcus' team like the back of my hand - all he's got left is Drapion. A Dark and Poison type is completely useless against any Lucario, much less Ferra."

Sure enough, Marcus sighed as he pulled one last Pokeball off his belt;

"Alright, Drapion, let's give it all we can!"

Milo actually considered switching Ferra out and putting Tika back in.

 _Don't_ , advised Azura, _She was already pretty nervous fighting Honchkrow, I think she's learned everything she can take for one today. Just let Ferra wrap it up._

In principle, Milo would've liked to press Tika to go one more round, but…

 _Hmm, I guess you're right. This has already gone on long enough anyway, let's not prolong it any further._

"Okay", he called aloud, "This one's yours, too, Ferra. Bring it home, girl."

Marcus grimaced. Not only was Ferra immune to any and all Poison tactics, she was also resistant to Dark and doubly so to Drapion's off-type Bug moves. He had only one real option.

"Okay, Drapion, hunker down and stay alert!"

Milo smirked. Marcus was trying to use the same tactics he'd just used to beat Weavile.

"Let's see how alert he can stay, Ferra. Find a blind spot."

Just like that, the Aura Pokémon was off, dashing this way and that at a breakneck pace. Every few seconds she would stop and fling a Bone Rush towards the bewildered Ogre Scorp Pokémon, who did his level best to block each one with an Iron Tail.

The crowd roared as the bout continued. Drapion was barely keeping up with Ferra's attempts to snipe him, but she never stopped long enough to present a target for a counterattack. Finally, Milo tried something else;

"Okay, he's got some reflexes. Try a one-two, Ferra, then follow it in."

Marcus recognized the veiled language his brother always used to call his trick moves, and he tried to preempt it;

"Watch for a fake, Drapion, it's coming!"

This time, when Ferra stopped, she fired two Aura Spheres in quick succession. Drapion hesitated, doubting for a crucial second whether this was the fake he should beware of, before once again swinging an Iron Tail to block.

He only deflected the first attack, and was hit head on by the second Aura Sphere. As he made to recover, Ferra dashed in, and delivered a brutal Close Combat.

"Ah, crap", Marcus knew this was more or less it for him, "Fire Fang, Drapion! Make her back off!"

Milo said nothing, smirking as Ferra instinctively repelled Drapion's Fire attack with one of her own, a Blaze Kick that dazed the flailing Poison type.

Backing off in case of another unexpected attack, she fired off one final Aura Sphere that brought Marcus' final Pokémon crashing to the ground, unable to rise.

With that, the battle went to Milo, by a comfortable 3-0 score line. As the referee made it official, there was an ear splitting roar from the tens of thousands gathered in the stadium. Milo's win streak lived on, and the dramatic conclusion to the week's battling had more than lived up to all the hype. If Milo could bring that kind of firepower and more to the World Challenge, who could stand up to him? Could anybody beat that kind of mastermind strategy?

As the two brothers shook hands in the middle of the field before waving to the crowd, a chant arose;

"MI-LO! MI-LO! MI-LO!"

The younger brother just clapped along and smiled as he headed for his exit tunnel, Azura still at his side, like a seamless extension of her Trainer. As he headed down the tunnel and out of sight, he gave himself a little shake and replayed some of the crucial bits of the battle in his head as he prepared mentally for the media awaiting him.

Jenks, still his friend and loyal media manager, found him quickly and directed him around a corner to a waiting group of journalists;

"Hey, great work", the expert journalist clapped him quickly on the shoulder, "I think you played it just right."

"Thanks", Milo grinned, "I tried to make it a good one. Let's see if it worked, huh?"

With that he stepped up to the podium and looked expectantly towards the first reporter to grab the master microphone;

"Milo, congratulations on a comfortable win. Your overall thoughts on the battle? What does it mean for you to beat your older brother?"

"Well", Milo switched on his inner diplomat as he responded coolly, "Marcus is always a tough opponent, so I'm glad for the win. All in all, today was a mixed bag for me. My team came out and worked hard for the win, and I'm proud of them, but I also saw my second tier struggling against elite Pokémon like Absol and one or two others. I think without Ferra, today could've ended quite a bit differently. So, yeah, a great win, but there's still plenty to improve on."

"You say 'without Ferra'", came the next question, "but you also had Azura, right? Surely she could've put in the same work and gotten the win?"

"Maybe," Milo answered noncommittally, "but my focus right now is mainly on raising the bar for my second tier, so that's where I'm coming from on that."

"Milo, for the sake of context, how would you compare your second tier to the Big Six right now?"

"I'll let you imagine that one", he said with a sly grin, "But consider that while my second tier Pokémon are about even with Marcus, Ferra just swept half of his team without breaking a sweat. Absol included."

"Let's take it the other way", came a follow-up question, "You said this was a mixed bag from your second tier; they already look pretty strong, where exactly do you see a need to improve?"

"The most obvious thing is that power gap", Milo had considered this in depth during the battle, "But that will always be there; the Big Six are improving just as fast as the second tier can catch up. I think, beyond that, the first pain point I saw was confidence. Tika had a lot of nerves against Honchkrow, and Lithos had a few moments of hesitation against Absol. The other thing is discipline. Nina and Hunter both went down because they forgot to stay ahead of the play and were too predictable. I think those two things will improve with experience, so I'm not overly concerned. They've definitely improved quite a bit in the last year or so."

There was a quiet moment of scribbling on notebooks and rustling of papers, and Jenks grabbed the microphone. He'd arranged a couple 'loaded questions' ahead of time;

"Milo", he began, "I see you're sporting your new clothing line; the K&M brand looks great. What's that been like, dabbling in the business and marketing world?"

"It makes my head spin, to be honest", there were a few good-natured chuckles as Milo rubbed the back of his head, slightly embarrassed, "I've had a lot of help from some very smart people, not least of all Kara; she's been a huge help getting this off the ground. One thing I'd like to mention is that one third of every K&M sale goes to establishing scholarships for underprivileged Trainers, to help them get the education they need to compete."

"Awesome", Jenks had been hoping to highlight the opportunity the young couple was presenting for these disadvantaged young Trainers, "One last question. Since you're not a Champion, Leader, or Elite, you'll have to qualify for the World Challenge from the bottom of the ladder. The question on everyone's mind, I think, is this; where exactly will you be starting your qualification campaign?"

"Aha, the big question!" Milo chuckled. He knew this was a matter of significant public intrigue; qualification for the World Challenge started at grassroots local tournaments for everyone except the aforementioned League officials of each region. This allowed every single Trainer in the world a fair chance to battle their way to the top. Milo's official title was 'Sinnoh League Ambassador', and thus he had no designated entry point later on in the process. He would have to work his way all the way up from the very bottom.

"Here it is", he leaned forward with a grin, "I will begin my World Challenge where my Pokémon journey started all those years ago. You'll see me in one week at the Jubilife Open."

A massive buzz broke out. Finally, the big reveal; Milo's entry point to the Challenge was secret no longer! As the reports and phone calls began to fly thick and fast (more than a few journalists were trying to book tickets to Jubilife that very second, knowing the prices were about to skyrocket), Jenks coughed politely into the microphone and concluded the interview.

"Thanks, Milo. Alright, that about wraps up the time we have. Thank you all for coming!"

The assembled journalists knew they had been dismissed, and began filtering anxiously out, more than happy with what they'd heard.

Milo breathed a tired sigh and sat back, running his hands through his hair. Jenks, who had just finished ushering the last of the reporters out of the room, gave a deep breath of relief himself, turning back to 'The Mastermind'.

"That went just about perfect, wouldn't you say?"

"Yep", Milo smiled, "You're the best, as usual. You've got these interviews down to a science, Jenks."

"Why thank you", chuckled the media manager, "but I was talking about the battle, too. That was a strong showing."

Milo nodded carefully, and asked, "Yeah...but not _too_ strong, right?"

"Milo, I'm not sure what you expect. Nobody's going to be under any false sense of security, even against your second tier Pokémon. Everyone's going to be scared to fight you all the time, no matter what."

The young man frowned as he walked with Jenks out of the media room to collect his things and head back to his hotel,

"Hmm...Maybe I should start even lower, then. I could go with my third tier Pokémon up until the Sinnoh Finals, I bet…"

Jenks just shook his head with a rueful grin;

"Milo, Milo, Milo...When are you going to get it through your head that you're just _too big_ to play the underdog anymore? Everybody knows – _everybody_ knows – what you're capable of, no matter what Pokémon you put on the field. Everybody's scared of you."

"Not everybody", Milo's face fell as he replied.

Jenks stopped short, his head down;

"I...yeah. You're right. Not everybody. If we're being honest, though, you need to deal with that, too. Soon. You know what's coming, and you should have your head on straight when it does."

Milo receded into silence as they walked. It was a touchy subject, one that he was loathe to even think about, but…

 _Jenks is right_ , Azura was still faithfully padding along next to him, _You need to face up to her, one way or another._

"I just...where do I even begin?"

His question was put on hold as they emerged into the early evening sunlight outside the stadium. A path had been cleared for him to get to the car, but people were lined up on either side, desperate to get a look at him, and he reflexively began signing everything that was handed to him, smiling for every camera stuck out in front of him, doing whatever he could to appease the screaming fans.

After a few minutes, he finally slid into the sleek, black car that hummed to life and took off towards the Golden Dome Hotel.

"Congrats!" Kara was waiting for him in the car, and planted a quick kiss on his cheek, "That was a really fun one! You also just condemned Marcus to a night on the couch, according to Gardenia."

He gave her a half-hearted grin and mumbled a vague 'Thanks', but was still concerned with the issue Jenks had reminded him about. His question still burned in his mind; where could he begin?

"What's up?"

Kara had, of course, quickly picked up on his sour mood.

"That's my fault", said Jenks bluntly from the front passenger seat, "I told him he has to do something about _that_ before it comes up during the Challenge."

"That? Oh. Amaya."

Milo winced at the mere mention of the name, something Kara was sharp enough to pick up on;

"Milo, he's right. Look, you can barely even hear her name without freaking out. I know you don't want to hear it, but...it's time to grit your teeth and do something."

"Come on", Milo wheedled, "Not now; I'm supposed to be celebrating a victory!"

Kara fixed him with an eyebrow-raised glare that dispelled his feeble excuse instantly.

"Fine...So what the hell am I supposed to do, anyway? She hates me, there's nothing I can do about that!"

"Well, for one, you could publicly acknowledge her existence. You've completely ignored her for way too long."

"Yeah, because anything I say will kick off the biggest, most pointless drama of the decade."

Jenks insisted, "Yes, you're right, it will. But the longer you hold off the worse it will be, and if you try to just let it slide, it's going to blow up on its own sooner or later."

They continued back and forth like this all the way back to the hotel, and on up to Milo's suite. Kara and Jenks kept telling him that, essentially, the only way out of this was to get through it. Milo, on the other hand, had a bundle of half-hearted excuses.

'Not before the Challenge' was his go-to, though he also tried 'People will eventually just forget about it' and 'She might eventually want to be friends again', which the whole world knew could never happen. The fallout between the two former companions had been both nasty and public, a combination that never led to spontaneous healing later on.

Eventually Milo, quite worked up by this point, flung himself dramatically onto the couch in his suite's living room;

"Alright, fine! Since nobody will just freaking drop it, I guess I don't have a choice! What _exactly_ do you expect me to do?"

With a gentle smile, Kara sat down next to him and rubbed his arm;

"Don't be so dramatic, you. This doesn't have to be super painful; you can let Jenks set up a scripted interview with someone we trust and talk about it that way."

"Sure", Jenks nodded with relief, "Heck, I'll even conduct it myself if that makes you feel better. I really think this will work best in the long run, Milo."

Exhaustedly, Milo nodded, "Fine. Let's do it. If we're going to make it happen, I'd rather do it before the Open, though. I don't want to be worried about some interview when my qualification starts."

"You got it", Jenks replied immediately, "I'm just going to go make some calls and find a big enough network that will air it on short notice."

"Great", Kara stood and beckoned her boyfriend, "Come on, Milo. You and I should practice, okay?"

This was the biggest thing that had helped Milo get better at public appearances over the last few years; before any big interview, he and Kara would sit down and role-play their way through the most likely questions so Milo could be ready.

So, as they had done so many times before, the two of them sat opposite one another at the kitchen table, shook hands, and Kara began;

"Milo, thanks for being here today. I understand you're here to talk about a particularly sore subject for you. We've heard bits and pieces for years regarding the rift between yourself and Amaya, the current Champion of Johto, but we've never gotten your side of the story. What exactly happened to rip you two apart so violently?"

 **Author's Notes:**

 **And we're off! Welcome to Milo and the Big Six! In case you're unaware, this is a direct sequel to another story of mine; Milo and the Blue Umbreon. If you haven't read that, you probably should. Please?**

 **First things first here, what do you guys think of the time skip? I'm pretty excited about it, honestly, but I know some people don't go for that kind of thing, and I really hope I pulled it off well (so far). If not, don't be afraid to call it out! Criticism is helpful!**

 **If you've got questions about what the world of Milo looks like eight years after Blue Umbreon, I urge patience. I'm doing my best to supply answers smoothly as needed, instead of doing a huge, ugly info dump up front. That being said, you're also free to go ahead and ask questions in reviews or PMs, and I'll answer as best I can without spoiling stuff.**

 **I'm already hard at work on Chapter 2 of this story, but I may also take an occasional break to work on some of the other non-Milo ideas I've had since I started on Pokémon fanfiction.**

 **But hey, I'll shut up now. I don't own Pokémon. I wish you a good life. Cheers, and thanks for reading!**

 **-Nano**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Let the Games Begin

Four days later, Milo found himself seated in a studio, rubbing his hands together nervously as camera crews and lighting techs ran last-second checks on every conceivable thing. Jenks, seated across from him, gave him an encouraging nod;

"Hey, don't freak out on me, Milo. Don't overthink this. Just answer the questions, that's all."

"Just like we practiced," added Kara, who was standing off-camera behind Jenks as moral support. Milo felt rather foolish, needing this much coaching to get through one lousy interview.

 _Just do it_ , he told himself, _Answer the questions like you practiced. It's not complicated._

All too soon, everyone fell silent, all eyes focused on Milo and Jenks, and the man behind the main camera gave a wave and a thumbs-up. They were on.

"Milo," began Jenks warmly with a handshake, "Thanks for joining us today to open up on your...well, rocky relationship with the Johto Champion, Amaya. Where would you say things stand personally between the two of you right now?"

Milo took a deep breath and kept his eyes focused on Jenks as he answered;

"Well, I don't think it will surprise anyone that things aren't great. She's made her feelings _very_ public – and she has every right, if she wants to do that – but I don't think I'm as angry with her as she is with me."

"Mhmm, okay. Now, she's made it known that she feels primarily upset about the lack of contact between you two in the years following that memorable Rookie campaign, and your rise to the spotlight in the time since then. Is that fair? What's your assessment of that?"

"For starters," Milo frowned and resituated himself, "I don't think anyone was entirely blameless in that whole fiasco. I'll admit, I could've – should've – made more of an effort to keep in touch, but at the same time every good friendship is two-sided, right? The point I made to her when everything went sour was that I'm not the only one who could've tried to meet in the middle, you know?"

"Interesting," Jenks nodded, knowing the real crux of the issue was coming up, "Now, tell me about the state of communications between you since that point. I'm guessing it's been pretty minimal?"

"Correct," Milo confirmed wearily, "We haven't really had any contact in quite a long time. At least, not direct contact. She's had _plenty_ to say about me."

"So, why drop out of contact entirely? We've all seen what Amaya has to say, but nobody quite knows why you've stayed silent for so long."

"To be perfectly honest," Milo had to exert a concerted, conscious mental effort not to start fidgeting with his hands, "I hate dealing with drama – you know, all the social politics, the 'he said, she said' kind of stuff. I can't stand it. I've done my best to just ignore it all and focus on my battling."

"Well, then why now? What's changed?"

"I guess I just didn't want to let it fester any more. I've realized that kind of thing eats at you mentally whether you acknowledge it or not. With everything that's going on now and everything that's happened since then, I'm just trying to get it out of my system and move on."

Jenks paused, giving Milo a tiny nod – a signal, one they'd discussed beforehand. Milo braced himself mentally; here came the part he dreaded the most – reliving the awful moment when he'd lost his best friend.

"I guess it would make sense," started Jenks, "to pause here and ask – Milo, could you give us your version of events? We've heard Amaya's story, but according to you, what really happened five years ago in Johto that set all this off?"

 **Flashback – Milo**

He felt absolutely giddy – he'd been planning this for weeks now, and it had worked out perfectly. The Johto Masters Exhibition Tournament had just wrapped up, and 'Maya had won. Not only had she won, she'd done so with an incredible swagger. Her all-out offensive style looked more dominant than ever, and the whole battling world was singing her praises. At this rate, she could soon represent a real threat to Lance's Johto title. Speculation already ran rampant about whether such a challenge had already crept into the ambitious young woman's thoughts. Milo had purchased a plane ticket to get to Goldenrod for the post-tournament celebration, and he could hardly wait to surprise his old friend.

Beaming, his hands almost shaking with anticipation, Milo presented his invitation and bounded into the upscale club where the party was being held. It didn't take long to track down 'The Hammer', and he rushed over to unveil himself;

"Surprise! Congratulations, 'Maya!"

His old friend's head snapped up in shock, and her brow furrowed as she shot up out of her overly cushioned chair;

"What? Milo? What the hell are _you_ doing here?"

 _Typical 'Maya_ , he told himself, _Should've known not to expect sunshine and rainbows, I guess._

"Ha! Isn't it obvious?" His face almost hurt from smiling, but he couldn't help it, "I'm here to congratulate you! I know it's been a while since we've caught up and all, so I figured I would fly over and surprise you!"

"...I'm more surprised that you had time in your oh-so-busy schedule for little old me."

His grin faltered a bit at that, but then again, Amaya had always been this way. Rough around the edges and all...

"Ugh, tell me about it," he rolled his eyes and played along, "Kalos is nuts – I've got 'contractually required events' almost every single weekend. But hey, this isn't about me! How about you? Seems like Johto's treated you well!"

He had to shout a bit over the din of the crowd and the music, but a new voice cut in sharply from behind him;

"I'm surprised you care, Mr. Big Shot."

Milo whirled around, and his jaw fell open as he saw who had made the comment;

"Maxie? What are – you're out of jail?"

"Sure am," replied the older sister smugly. She had a drink in each hand, and she passed one to Amaya as she came around to stand protectively beside her younger sibling.

"If you kept in touch, maybe you'd have known sooner. I've been out for months, _Milo_."

"Oh," this surprise visit was quickly souring for the young man, "I guess...umm, sorry. I've just – well, you know how it is, right 'Maya?"

"Yeah," Amaya didn't sound all too sure of herself, "I get it. You're _super_ busy. All the time. Too busy to catch up."

Milo's face fell, and then quickly hardened as the pieces began to fall into place. True, he hadn't been able to keep up very well, but over the last few months, what limited communication he'd had with his best friend had evaporated. Rejected phone calls, unanswered texts… The timeline was a little too convenient.

"I – I've tried…"

"Not very hard," spat Maxie, "Too bad 'Maya doesn't depend on you anymore. She's done relying on you for validation."

"A-Amaya?" Milo looked to his old friend in utter shock.

She only glowered at the floor, seemingly unable to meet his eyes.

"Seriously?" Milo's shock flared quickly into anger, "So, what? Maxie gets released and suddenly you decide I don't pay you enough attention? Is that what this is about? Come on, 'Maya, you're bigger than that."

"That's rich," retorted the Twinleaf girl, her notoriously quick temper flaring into life, "Coming from the golden boy who picked fame over friendship."

"Fame over…? You're joking, right? Come _on_!"

People had begun to notice by now that not only had Milo put in a surprise appearance, but he and Amaya were having a full-blown argument.

"You know that's not fair," he fumed, "I don't know what you expect – I mean, how many times have _you_ come to Kalos to see _me_? Huh? Didn't think so!"

"Oh, _now_ I get it," Amaya, predictably, refused to back down. She set her eyes like flint and shot right back, "Once you're the one making headlines I should just jump on the bandwagon and come fawn over you like everyone else? Not likely."

"Are you…" Milo paused, incredulous and horrified, "Are you actually _jealous_ that I get more attention now? Is that what this is? So it was fine when we were Rookies and everyone thought you were the hottest thing around, but when I get the hype then suddenly we have issues."

"Jealous? Unbelievable. Milo, you _wish_ I was jealous of you. I could kick your ass any day of the week."

Shaking his head in disbelief, Milo backed away from the glaring Amaya;

"I...I came to apologize for not catching up and to congratulate you for winning – but I guess 'The Hammer' doesn't really need anything from me, so I'll just go. If you see my friend Amaya, let her know I'm still looking for her."

With that last stinging remark, he stalked out of the party, painfully aware of the multitude of wide-eyed stares. He caught, from the corner of his eye, the smug smirk on Maxie's face.

He missed, however, the conflicted pain in his best friend's eyes as she watched him go.

 **End Flashback**

Milo took a deep breath as he finished his story.

"That was five years ago," he said with a low voice, "It honestly came out of nowhere. It really caught me by surprise, and if I could go back I would handle it differently. Hindsight is 20/20 and all, and looking back I can see that there was fault on both sides. Still, it's been frustrating to see it blown out of proportion. Initially I had hoped it would just be water under the bridge, like any other argument between friends, but once it got into the media there was no chance of that."

"Thanks again for sharing that with us after so long." Jenks replied at last, "I want to follow up by asking you to elaborate on one or two of your points. When you say there's blame to be found on both sides, what exactly do you mean?"

"When I was in Kalos, time was hard to come by. Contracted professional Trainers in Kalos have a lot of things to do, events to attend, all that. It's great, and I'm not bashing Kalos at all, but it left me short on time to visit Johto and keep up with Amaya."

"So where does blame enter into all that?"

"I just...as busy as I was, I think I could have made more of an effort to keep up with her long-distance. You know, texting, calling, all that. I wasn't very good about all that, and I definitely regret it now."

"I see. That's a tough thing to admit, I appreciate you sharing honestly with us. So then how do you refute some of the more aggressive claims and accusations from Amaya?"

Milo's eyes narrowed as he prepared to well and truly say his piece;

"I don't think she's got a clear handle on how everything went down. I honestly think Maxie has twisted her opinion against me unfairly; she's using Amaya as a gold mine to support her own failed attempts to make it as a Trainer."

"You're suggesting that Maxie wants you out of her sister's life to protect her own interests."

"That's exactly it," Milo could feel his anger rising all over again, "I mean, 'Maya and I were cool until Maxie showed up out of nowhere and suddenly we exploded."

Jenks just nodded, as he was on-camera, but behind him Kara was frantically motioning for Milo to chill out and keep himself under control.

"Well," the expert journalist strategically moved the conversation along before Milo said anything problematic, "There's the reaction we've all been wondering about for so long. If I can just ask about a couple more things – your decision not to fight Champions. Much has been made of the timing of that choice; you announced it right around the time Amaya won the Johto title from Lance, just a couple years after the blowup you just told us about. How much would you say those two things are correlated?"

"Not at all," Milo fired off an immediate answer, "Those are totally unrelated. She likes to claim that I avoid Champions because I'm scared of her, but actually it was Cynthia who convinced me to do that. It's kind of taboo for a non-Champion to beat a Champion without taking their title, and I don't want the title. Simple as that."

"Interesting," nodded Jenks, "One last question. The central question every battle fan has to ask themselves when it comes to you and Amaya; who wins in a battle? If you had to call it right now, one way or the other, who would come out on top?"

"Well," the ghost of a smirk pulled at Milo's lips, "I wouldn't be very confident in my team if I didn't say me. The Big Six didn't earn their reputation the easy way, and I haven't seen a team in a while that could take us at full tilt."

With that, the interview ended, and Milo sat back with visible relief as the little red light switched off, signaling that they were no longer on air.

"Well," Jenks raised an eyebrow, brushing himself off as he stood, "I didn't expect you to get so testy there. I told you to let your reaction show, but that was almost a bit too much."

"Yeah, sorry about that," Milo shrugged and stretched his legs out, still sore from his last training session, "I just get worked up thinking about it. You know how it is. Now I guess I have to be ready for all this to really hit the fan, huh?"

"Won't take long, I bet," said Kara, giving Milo a quick side hug, "Your 'hot take' is going to be big news across the battle world by tonight."

"Should be fun to watch," Jenks was trying to maintain positivity. He rubbed his hands together briskly, and led the two young stars from the studio, going over their plans;

"Now, the flight leaves in an hour and a half. All your stuff is packed and ready to go. You should be in Jubilife for dinner. Cool?"

Milo gave his head a small shake to clear his thoughts, and confirmed his understanding;

"Sounds good. Thanks, Jenks. You always take the best care of us."

"Well," the journo shrugged, "That's why they pay me the big bucks."

Milo was looking forward to this temporary return to Jubilife. He'd made plans to regularly visit the JPTA to teach several masterclass sessions over the next few weeks, since the first couple phases of his qualification path for the World Challenge were close enough, geographically, that he could base himself out of Jubilife City for the better part of two months.

In fact, Milo was free to stick around that general area until the Sinnoh Finals on Lily Island – assuming, of course, that he swept his way through the smaller tournaments leading up to that point. He planned to rely on his third tier team for these opening level fights, since even his second tier now had enough power and experience to go toe to toe with someone like Marcus.

He wanted to disguise his full strength, and help his stronger Pokémon avoid the inevitable mental fatigue that followed long tournament stretches. Plus, one-sided battles were much less entertaining.

"Raichu and Dragonair should enjoy the chance to see some real action," he mused to himself as the plane made its way over Central Sinnoh.

"Already working out your team, huh?"

He looked up to see Kara smirking at him.

"Eh? Yeah, just thinking of who I want to use from the third tier."

"Third tier?" A voice just behind Milo asked, "Man, that's crazy. How many tiers do you have now?"

This new voice belonged to Corbin Copper, an actor and a good friend of Milo's. In fact, they'd met when Corbin was cast as Milo in a Kalos-made dramatization film recounting the Jubilife Trainer's meteoric rise from rookie to superstar. They'd had to endure some awkwardness, since Kara played herself, and thus had to fall head over heels in love with (and yes, kiss) Corbin. The director had insisted on utmost accuracy, so Milo had to coach Corbin on how to correctly fall in love with his girlfriend. Thankfully, the odd experience drew them together, and they became fast friends. Corbin loved watching Milo's battles in person whenever possible.

"After all," he always said, "You have to know your role – you never know when they'll ask for a sequel."

Milo leaned over the back of his seat to answer his friend's question;

"Right now I've got four tiers. The Big Six are at the top, obviously. Then there's the second tier – like the ones I used against Marcus. There are nine of them right now. My third tier has about a dozen Pokémon somewhere between semi-pro and standard pro level. Then there's the fourth tier, who are about Rookie level."

"Geez, man," Corbin shook his head, "You're like a training machine."

"Hey," Milo shrugged, "You do what you love, right? You've been in how many movies and shows in the past year?"

"Fair enough," the actor settled back into his seat, his curiosity sated.

Kara turned back to her boyfriend and asked offhandedly;

"Are you bringing a failsafe, or just going with the third tier at, uh, whatever your first tournament is?"

"Jubilife Open? Doubt I'll need it, but yeah, I'll still bring a failsafe," Milo replied, "I'll check the roster before it kicks off and decide whether to bring someone from the second tier or the Big Six."

Milo's alma mater, the JPTA, received him warmly, and he found a full set of three training fields reserved for him to use whenever he needed them. The students all gazed wide-eyed at him and Kara wherever they went. He was fully prepared to give a multitude of impromptu lessons and explanations whenever the curious students showed up to watch him train (despite the teachers' explicit instructions not to bother him during his training).

He decided that evening to knock out two Starly with one Rock Throw – give the JPTA students a show, and get the Big Six some good exercise.

"Alright," he called as he threw all six Pokéballs in the air, "time to stretch those legs!"

The murmuring started instantly as the world-renowned team emerged.

 _Ah_ , Azura cooed delightedly, _That feels good._

"Listen up. We've got the Jubilife Open coming up, but the third tier will do the brunt of the battling there, so this is your chance to...well, beat the crap out of each other, I guess. Use those two fields in groups of three. First hit is out, winner stays on."

 _We get to make our own groups?_ Aurora's voice all but burst with excitement – she hated fighting Blaze when Milo picked the groups for them. He knew this, and chuckled;

 _Yes, Aurora_ , he knelt down to pet his beloved Glaceon, _Since today's just general exercise you can pick your own groups._

With that, Milo's Big Six split off – Blaze, Jet, and Azura headed to one field while Drake, Ferra, and Aurora grabbed the other. As they began doing what they did best, Milo pulled another group of Pokéballs from his waist (professionals could obtain a special license to carry up to a dozen Pokémon on their person for convenience's sake) and released five of his third tier Pokémon.

Out came a Raichu, Dragonair, Swellow, Lopunny, and Clauncher. These didn't have nicknames – Milo realized soon after his Rookie year that naming every Pokémon he ever caught would quickly get out of hand. Instead, it became a motivator; any Pokémon that earned a place in the second tier received a nickname as a reward.

"Alright, listen up, the five of you. Our World Challenge starts in just a few days, and you'll be carrying us through the first few rounds."

Raichu's ears drooped and began to tremble, and Milo deduced the reason;

"Hey don't worry, bud. Either Azura or someone from the second tier will be there as a backup, so you just have to do your best, alright? I know you've got this."

 _You really think we're ready?_ The Mouse Pokémon looked up at Milo with big eyes.

 _Of course, Rai_ , commented Lopunny, _Milo trusts us to carry the team so that the second tier and the Big Six are fresh later on. It's a big job, but we can do it._

Milo smiled – his third tier had really come together as a unit quite well, and Lopunny often acted as the de facto mother figure of the group.

"You can do this, Raichu," Milo confirmed, "I totally believe in you, but right now it's time to do some work so you're as sharp as possible when it starts. Ready? Let's start with speed drills."

He had years of experience under his belt now, but Milo still relied heavily on speed and evasion as the foundation of his team's unique style. So, lining up alongside his Pokémon, he yelled,

"Alright, down and back, we'll do five sets and then have a break. Go!"

As expected, the students began pressing in as close as they dared to get a glimpse of Milo working with his Pokémon. He took it perfectly in stride; for another three hours he was lost in his own world, training and working and improving alongside his team, and offering tips and explanations every so often to the star-struck students of the JPTA.

After picking up some fast food for dinner on the way home, he got back fairly late to the hotel suite he and Kara would be using for the coming weeks. She had curled herself up on the couch with the news on, already in her pajamas.

"Hey," she poked her head up to give him a smile before wrinkling her nose, "Go shower, you're all sweaty. Clean up, stinky."

"Yeah, yeah," he rolled his eyes, "Already on it."

Fifteen minutes later, a freshly clean Milo at last flopped onto the couch beside his girlfriend, tired but pleased with the day's work. Nodding towards the television, he asked;

"Anything good?"

"Not exactly _good_ , but you'll want to see this."

He frowned and glanced back at the TV screen. It was Amaya. The news crew was going over a candid interview she'd apparently given earlier that day;

"Why should I care what that stuck-up Milo has to say? I have an entire region to run, and he apparently has nothing better to do than take cheap shots at me and Maxie."

"Amaya," the reporter was hustling down the sidewalk of Silver Town to keep up with the small but fierce young woman, who was on her way somewhere in a hurry, "What do you make of the specific call-out of your sister?"

At that, the fiery Johto Champion whirled around and jabbed a finger right into the man's face;

"I think it's a load of crap to go after someone's family. I don't talk about his head-in-the-clouds supermodel girlfriend, or his pampered, spoiled little sister, do I? He only went after Maxie because he's afraid of me. If he had the balls to fight a Champion – _this_ Champion – his worthless win streak would bite the dust."

The camera cut away from the replay of the interview and back to the news anchor, who sent the broadcast to a 'commentary panel' with a special guest;

"This evening, we're thrilled to welcome Mr. Lance Waturu, Kanto Champion. Lance, thanks for being with us – your initial thoughts on this reaction from Amaya?"

Milo and Kara were speechless. Kara had, over the years, learned to deal with these types of insults from her detractors, but to hear such a comment from Amaya, of all people, left her stunned. Milo was already fuming, but also nervous.

"Of course it's Lance," he groaned, "He's going to 'come to my defense' and make it worse, I bet."

Sure enough, Lance began immediately, "First off, I'm just pleased that Milo has finally come out to defend his reputation. Despite her words today, Amaya's been the one taking cheap shots for years, and he's only just responding for the first time. I think this little speech of hers today is one of the most hypocritical things I've seen for some time. That's not how a Champion should behave."

"Lance, stop," begged Milo uselessly from his living room, "You can't say that when you're literally just getting on the news to take cheap shots at _her_."

Everyone knew about Lance's poorly concealed grudge against the upstart girl who'd taken his Johto title. True, he still led the Kanto region as Champion, but he'd long been proud of his status as the only Champion of two regions.

"I think," said one of the other panelists, a former battler from Johto anxious to paint Amaya in a better light, "this rivalry between two of the world's best Trainers is finally showing some life. For a while they had a friendship rivalry which produced some great battles, but then it went stale and kind of became a cold war sort of thing – all bark and no bite. Now maybe we'll see the honest to goodness clash of titans we've been wanting for years. As much as you hate to see petty arguments, nothing beats a real rivalry, and we may finally get that from Milo and Amaya."

"That's a good point," Lance cut back in, "With the World Challenge coming up, we could see that played out on the biggest possible stage. All the same, while I was impressed by Milo's maturity when he talked about 'fault on both sides', I have to say Amaya's probably to blame for this friendship gone sour, and her comments today haven't demonstrated the character of a Champion, and surely won't help her public image."

With a huff, Milo switched off the television.

"Well, that didn't help. Now she's going to feel some kind of righteous anger and defend herself, blah blah blah."

There was a knock at the door, which Milo got up to answer;

"Hey, me," greeted Corbin Copper with a cheeky grin, "How are we feeling? You saw all that on the news just now, yeah?"

"Yeah," Milo sighed.

It was remarkable sometimes, the degree of similarity between the two young men. Corbin was almost the same height as Milo, maybe a couple inches taller, and had the same kind of excited glint in his face, even the same dark hair that never fully behaved itself. He had a face better suited for the big screen, perhaps, a bit sharper and more striking than the Trainer. Still, both kept themselves lean and muscular; Milo as a result of his training, and Corbin to play the dashing, handsome love interest – his favorite movie role.

"Eh," the actor bumped Milo's shoulder and stepped inside, "I wouldn't lose any sleep over it, this kind of thing happens to everyone eventually. Got any snacks?"

"Sure," shrugged Milo, "Popcorn's in the cabinet. How's Mel?"

He'd never consider himself a Trainer, but Corbin did have one Pokémon. A Meloetta had been his co-star in a dramatic movie about a Trainer who dreamed of becoming a singer. The incredibly cheesy production made very little noise at the box office, but Corbin and the Aria Forme Meloetta – whom he called Mel - formed an inseparable bond while filming. He'd ended up buying the grateful half-Psychic and keeping her as his own Pokémon partner.

"See for yourself," the actor smiled, and poked a button on the ball hooked to his belt.

With a flash, Mel appeared, graceful as ever. Milo bent down to greet her, and another flash came of its own accord from his backpack, lying on the counter.

 _Ah_ , Azura stretched her muscles before greeting her friend, _Mel, a pleasure as always._

The two Pokémon fell to chatting quite amicably. Azura was (still) by far the most 'civilized' of the Big Six, always even keeled and easygoing away from the battlefield.

As the Pokémon had their own mini-reunion, the three young stars fell to joking and hanging out themselves, which did wonders for Milo's mood after the latest chapter in the Amaya fiasco.

"You know," Corbin leaned forward from the armchair in which he'd situated himself, "My agent asked me to keep a close eye on your World Challenge this time around. Whispers of a 'Milo 2' are picking up steam, especially if you win this thing."

Milo just chuckled and rolled his eyes, but Kara couldn't resist having a little fun;

"Perfect," the Performer donned a mischievous smile, "I'll make sure to publicly and aggressively make out with Milo after every tournament."

"Please don't," groaned both young men.

"Ah, come on," the honey-blonde Performer superstar cackled, "Don't you want to find out if Milo's still a better kisser?"

This was one of her favorite inside jokes; one that had started when they made the first Milo movie. They had, of course, filmed a dramatic, romantic kissing scene between Corbin (as Milo) and Kara (as Kara) on the 'rainy beachfront of Pastoria' (actually, they'd used farming irrigation equipment to create fake rain just outside Cyllage City), and when the director had at last called "That's a wrap" the first words out of Kara's mouth had been;

'Not bad, but Milo's a better kisser.'

She relished the fact that both of them felt supremely awkward about her proclamation, and brought it up whenever she could slip it into conversation.

"You're hilarious," said a humorless Milo, back in their hotel suite in Jubilife, "But I bet there's one other thing I'm better at."

He winked at Corbin, who all but read his mind before playing along, "Oh, and what's that?"

"I bet my instincts as a Trainer make me a more accurate pillow thrower. Let's find out, hmm?"

The fancy hotel suite living room had a surplus of small cushions, and as Kara's giggling continued Milo and Corbin scrambled about for ammunition.

"Alright," declared the actor, arms full of throwable cushions, "You're on; challenge accepted. The target?"

Milo's eyes narrowed and his smirk bordered on evil as he whirled about and launched his first pillow – straight into Kara's face.

"MILO!" She shrieked and attempted to tell him off, but was stopped short by a second pillow hurled by Corbin, who proudly announced;

"Ha! A tie."

"Keep going!" Milo called gleefully as the besieged Performer leapt off the couch and frantically sought cover, "A moving target! First to miss is the loser!"

The frantic pillow fight continued until all three of them finally ran out of excess energy.

"Adults we may be," smiled an unrepentant Corbin, "But we're all still kids at heart, I guess."

 _Finally_ , sniffed Azura when they called a halt, _I thought you hooligans would never quiet down._

Instead of replying, Milo chucked another pillow rudely at his prized Umbreon, who promptly tackled him.

"Alright, alright!" He held his hands up in joking surrender, "You win, Azura."

 _Hmph_ , the Umbreon relented, with one last paw swipe to her Trainer's head, _You're lucky we're not at home on Stark Island, or I'd put a Shadow Ball through your face for that little stunt._

The evening's shenanigans did wonders to lift Milo's spirits. One by one, the days slipped by in Jubilife City, and to Milo's pleasant surprise, the whole Amaya affair remain relatively quiet on the media front as he built up to his opening tournament in the World Challenge qualification process.

Even more strangely, general public opinion seemed to swing in his favor. He'd feared that his outburst might be framed as petulant and immature. Instead, Sinnoh and Kalos fans had his back, feeling an apparent responsibility to protect 'one of their own' (somehow losing track of Amaya's own status as a Sinnoh native), and most Kantoans supported him after Lance presented his vociferous opinions. The only staunch faction that backed Amaya was, predictably, Johto. The people of her region clung fiercely to their feisty young Champion.

 _Can't focus on that too much_ , he reminded himself as he looked down at the battle field, _I just need to do my thing, one step at a time._

Day One of the Jubilife Open had arrived at last, and Milo attentively watched the local Trainers of Jubilife duke it out, waiting for his turn to join them.

"It's time," called an amplified voice after another few rounds came and went, "The one you've all been waiting for!"

 _I love these grassroots tournaments_ , thought Milo with a smile as he got ready to step out for his first battle of the day, _It just feels more like a close community thing. It's more...pure._

It certainly had a different feel from the grandiose stadiums he usually fought in. The overcrowded bleachers, on loan from the JPTA and a couple other local schools, were separated from the slightly uneven field only by a five foot 'safety zone'.

"He's an international superstar from right here in South Jubilife!" The 'announcer' was a local news anchor seated under a canopy in the middle of the stands with a megaphone, "Give it up for...MILO!"

The small crowd managed a respectable noise despite its size. When Milo had registered, the event's organizers had added as many extra seats and tickets as they could, and once he'd announced his participation, prices for those extra seats had gone through the roof. It was by far the most profitable local tournament on record (which wasn't saying a whole lot, but still).

He waved and smiled as he made his way out of the stands to shake hands with his opponent; a young kid who stared wide-eyed at the world famous JPTA alumnus.

"I-I'm Jonah," he stuttered.

"Nice to meet you, Jonah," responded Milo graciously, "Let's have a good battle. Best of luck!"

With that, the two Trainers retreated to their battle positions. The referee waved a tattered green flag and they were off;

"Luxio," called Jonah, "You're up!"

"Okay, Lopunny," Milo responded coolly, "The honor is yours."

 _How exciting!_ Lopunny hummed contentedly in her Trainer's mind, _I can't wait!_

Milo had, of course, fought his fair share of Luxio in the past, and he knew what to look out for.

"We'll be indirect here, Lopunny. Quick Attack!"

Jonah, still somewhat flabbergasted about fighting 'the Mastermind' himself, stuttered as he made his first play;

"Uh, L-Luxio, chase it down! Use Thunder Fang!"

 _Hmm, wrong move_ , thought Milo, _Ah well. He's just a kid, after all._

"Lopunny," said Milo calmly, "Use Bounce."

With one push of her mighty legs, Milo's Rabbit Pokémon complied wonderfully. Luxio's Thunder Fang dissipated harmlessly just as Lopunny came crashing down on top of him. The Flying move wasn't the most effective thing, but Milo primarily intended the move as a means of escape. Now, however, he moved to counter;

"Double Hit."

Luxio got zero recovery time, as Lopunny laid siege to her opponent. At last, Jonah made a cursory attempt to reclaim control of the battle;

"Luxio, back off! Use Shock Wave!"

"Follow him, Lopunny. Fire Punch."

That ended the round. Milo stifled a chuckle; it was a big change to go from all-out mental warfare against Marcus, calling on the Big Six to finish the job...to watching a moderate effort from his third-tier Lopunny overwhelm poor young Jonah. Still, he waited respectfully for the boy to recall his fallen Luxio, deciding to make a switch of his own;

 _I'm going to let Raichu have the next round_ , he informed his Rabbit Pokémon mentally.

 _Oh good! He'll be nervous, but have faith in him, Milo. He won't fail you._

 _I know_ , the Trainer responded, as Jonah called out his second Pokémon.

"Golbat, let's go!"

"Lopunny, return. Raichu, close this one out!"

The evolved Mouse Pokémon shifted anxiously from one foot to the other as he emerged;

 _Okay, I can do this, I've got this…_

 _Deep breaths_ , counseled Milo, _You're stronger, faster, and smarter than that Golbat. It'll be just like training, just follow my instructions. I trust you, now you have to trust me. Ready?_

Raichu nodded, and Jonah got the round started.

"Golbat, jump in and use Poison Fang!"

"Out of the way, Raichu. Quick Attack."

In his nervous state, Milo's Electric type put every ounce of effort he could muster into the Quick Attack, and virtually teleported around behind the ungainly Bat Pokémon.

"Good, now give him something spicy to chew on."

Jonah's Golbat squawked angrily at the big Thunderbolt that crashed into it, and the awestruck young Jonah tried a different strategy;

"Golbat! Okay, umm, Golbat...use Swift!"

Any of Milo's more experienced Pokémon could have countered that move on instinct alone, but the Jubilife sensation knew his Raichu didn't have the confidence or awareness to pull off a fancy escape he'd never practiced.

"You can take that hit, Raichu! Hit him back, with Thunder! Big as you can!"

The Sinnoh Ambassador nodded, proud to see his Electric type tank the Normal attack with only a small grunt of discomfort to even acknowledge it had hit him. Then, Raichu unleashed a powerful Thunder that left Golbat in an unconscious heap on the field.

"The winner is Raichu, and the battle victory goes to Milo!"

As the announcer made the call, the hundreds of people gathered at the South Jubilife Battle Plaza gave their loudest cheer of the day. As always, Milo was untouchable.

 _That was perfect, Raichu! Listen, those cheers are for you!_

The Mouse Pokémon was overwhelmed, and Milo smiled to himself as he stepped forward to shake young Jonah's hand again;

"Hey, good work out there, Jonah. You and your team have some real potential. Keep working! Best of luck in the rest of the Open!"

"Th-thanks," sputtered the boy, "I, uh, guess I just got an unlucky first draw. Hopefully the battle lottery is a bit nicer to me the rest of the day."

The Jubilife Open looked nothing like a traditional tournament setup. The organizers had to whittle down over two hundred entries from Jubilife City (anyone with a license and a Pokémon could enter) to just 25 Trainers who would go on to represent Jubilife at the Oreburgh District Championships – the next round of World Challenge qualification.

They used a rather clever strategy to thin the crowd; the city had six battle parks, including the South Jubilife Battle Plaza, where Milo now sat by on the sidelines watching the next pair of local Trainers get their battle started. The organizers assigned each of the Trainers who registered for the Jubilife Open to one of these six parks, and allotted a certain portion of the 25 total spots to each group of competitors. This particular battle park had six of the 25 spots, so Milo and the 42 others assigned to the South Jubilife Battle Plaza now had to earn one of those six places to progress to the next phase of the World Challenge.

The way those final six were determined was no less clever. A large pot held the names of each Trainer, and two names were pulled out at random to determine every battle. The winner's name went back into the pot unchanged, but the loser received a 'strike'. If someone with a strike lost a second time, they were eliminated. This strike system was intended to give people like Jonah a fair chance; it would be a poor measure of talent to eliminate him for losing once to Milo.

Over the course of three days, this random draw would be repeated and repeated, with more and more Trainers eliminated, until only the final six remained. As Day One rolled onward, it became apparent that more or less every single person, locals and battle tourists alike, had come for one single reason;

 _I feel kind of bad_ , remarked Milo to Azura, _I mean, there are some really promising Trainers here, but nobody really cares. They just want to see you._

 _Me?_ The Umbreon joked back as she licked a paw to groom her already tidy ears, _Try again Milo. They're here for you. Seeing me, or any of the Big Six, is just a bonus. You're the invincible Mastermind here. I'm just your average shiny Umbreon._

The young superstar sighed and clapped respectfully as Jonah received his second loss, a respectable 2-1 defeat that nonetheless ended his World Challenge qualification run at the first hurdle.

"H-hey, Mr. Milo," came a voice.

He turned to see who had called, only to find a nervous-looking young girl, no older than 8 or 9.

"What's up?"

"Uh," she paused, and Milo offered an encouraging smile, "Wh-where's Princess Kara?"

 **Kara**

Nostalgia washed over her as she stepped out of the airport into the familiar Floaroma breeze. The gentle warmth of the late morning sunlight gave her childhood town a soft, picturesque feel that would forever remain near and dear to her heart.

"There you are!"

Kara blinked at the sound, and it took only a second for her to find a smiling face amidst all the hustle and bustle; her father had come to pick her up. Kara wore a sunhat and a pair of large sunglasses as a meager measure of disguise to provide some anonymity in public, but…

"Should've figured the hat and glasses trick wouldn't fool you, dad."

"Of course not," he chuckled, "I'm not _that_ old. Well, not yet anyway. Welcome home, my dear."

As he heartily embraced his daughter, he couldn't help but express his sentiments;

"It's so, _so_ good to see you, Kara."

"It's good to be back, dad," she responded graciously, "I can't wait for tomorrow!"

As they got into her dad's aging car and drove off towards the same flower shop Kara had grown up in, her dad asked,

"I have to say, I'll take any excuse to see my daughter come home, but what made you want to try this whole World Challenge thing?"

"Well," she grinned, "Milo was telling me a while back how much stronger Zexon had gotten from training with his Big Six, and I just thought it'd be nice to switch up my team's routine. The Floaroma Qualifier is pretty low-key, so I figured I might as well give battling a shot, for a change."

Over the eight years since her Rookie season as a runaway Performer in Sinnoh, Kara's rise to stardom had allowed her the financial freedom to help renovate her parent's storied flower shop, and set up a penthouse apartment for herself on the building's third floor (her parents lived on the second).

By the time they arrived, Kara's mother had a nice lunch prepared.

"I put up the closed sign for the day," she added, "I figure we can afford a half-day off to catch up, right?"

"Oh, but…" Kara hesitated as she asked, "Can't we open back up after lunch? I really miss helping out around here."

Her parents were only too happy to oblige, and when they had finished their meal, Kara changed into something comfortable but presentable, and grabbed a pair of gloves before helping her mother move the latest batch of Sunyshore lilies out to the front.

"It always feels great being around the shop," smiled Kara, "I love being a Performer, but it's a hectic life. It's nice to just take a day to relax, help out, and smell the roses. Literally."

Everyone who came by was shocked to see the famous young woman back in Floaroma – Kara's participation in the local World Challenge qualifying tournament had been kept well under wraps. That afternoon saw many happy reunions with old family friends, just the thing to satisfy the Performer's nostalgic itch.

Once the shop closed for the day, she got to catch up with her parents over dinner before retiring to her upstairs apartment.

"Get some sleep, you guys," she instructed her Pokémon as they all settled in, "Tomorrow we show the world that Performers are tough, too!"

 **Milo**

"Well," he commented to Azura later that evening, relaxing in his hotel suite after a fairly straightforward first day at the Jubilife Open, "So far so good. I haven't even had to use the second-tier backup yet. Your thoughts?"

 _Raichu has definitely improved_ , offered the shiny Umbreon, finding a nice pillow to curl up against.

A buzz from his watch drew the young superstar's attention to an incoming text;

 _I'm here_ , it read.

Marcus had flown into Jubilife to meet up for a chat. With both of their crazy schedules, chances for the two brothers to catch up were few and far between. Now that Marcus didn't have any major events until later in the World Challenge process, and Milo didn't have to change cities twice per week, they'd decided to meet up for a night and unwind a bit.

One generic pair of jeans and a grey hoodie later, Milo made his way unobtrusively to the airport to meet his elder sibling. They greeted one another briefly, and made their way on foot to the city's eastern gate.

"Ah, there we go," Milo smiled as they stepped into the open nighttime air of Route 203, "So, how's things, Marcus?"

"Good," nodded the Hearthome Leader, "Actually, they've been pretty exciting lately, on a few different fronts."

Milo raised an eyebrow at that, and prompted the explanation he knew he'd get either way;

"Oh? Do tell."

"This is all just between us, mind you, but...Wow, where to even begin…I guess family is always a good place to start. Dee and I have decided to get Martin a Vulpix for his fourth birthday coming up."

"Getting him a Pokémon already? Wow, that's starting him kind of young, don't you think?"

"Yeah," nodded the boy's father, "But we've talked about it and we really think it's for the best. This way he grows with it and learns to actually care for Pokémon. We just feel like his first real exposure to Pokémon shouldn't come from books and lessons."

"I guess it's your call," shrugged Milo, "Need any help from 'Uncle Milo' getting a good one for him?"

"I appreciate the offer, but we've already scouted out the local breeders and picked – hey, did you hear something just now?"

Both brothers stopped short, looking around them. They'd come a ways out into the gentle woodlands of Route 203 by now, and nothing seemed to move beyond the gentle rustling of grass and leaves in the cool night breeze. After a few seconds of careful silence, Milo ventured;

"What...did you hear?"

"I thought there were footsteps in the trees," frowned Marcus, "but...maybe not."

After another couple seconds making sure it had been a false alarm, the two famous brothers resumed their talk,

"Anyway, there's another potential piece of family news I wanted to ask you about."

Milo just looked at his older brother, who soon presented his question;

"I've been told, in confidence, that Bertha is getting tired of her job as part of Sinnoh's Elites."

"Hmm, that's not too surprising, I guess…" Milo paused with a frown, "Still, it'll be sad to see her go; she's been a cornerstone of the Sinnoh scene for so long."

"The reason I bring it up is that she's contacted me about the idea of moving up in her place, if she goes through with retirement."

"Whoa, really?"

Milo stopped and looked with something like awe at Marcus. A place in the Elite Four of any region was incredibly prestigious, and Sinnoh had a well-earned reputation as the toughest regional League in the world.

"Marcus, that's so awesome! Congrats, bro!"

"Thanks," the Dark type expert rubbed his head, not looking overly excited about his possible promotion, "I'm still getting to the question part, though. I just don't know if I can pick up and move that easily. I mean, I've got a family now, you know? Plus, that means finding a replacement Leader for Hearthome."

That certainly silenced Milo. He hadn't even considered the logistics of stepping up and out of the role of Gym Leader. Slowly, he turned the whole thing over in his head;

"Well...I guess if it happened soon, it wouldn't be _too_ bad, right? I mean, it'd be worse if Martin was already in school and he had to switch. Still, finding a replacement won't be...hang on, what would happen to Myrian?"

"Myrian…" Marcus' eyes slid off into the distance – a sure sign that he was deep in thought. Both brothers receded into silence, until Milo ventured a rather loaded question;

"What's her win rate these days? How often do challengers make it through her to your Gym team?"

"She's gotten pretty good," answered Marcus offhandedly, "Only one in four get past that Mismagius of hers. Why?"

Milo grinned rather mischievously as he got a glint in his eye, "Why do you think?"

Realization dawned on the older brother, but before he could answer, both of them heard a distinct crack from the trees off to Milo's left.

On pure instinct, Marcus lunged forward and tackled his little brother;

"MILO, GET DOWN!"

A split second later, a dangerous ball of Dark energy flashed through the space Milo had just vacated. The trees burst into pandemonium, with screams and yells reverberating around the two brothers as further attacks burst in from all sides.

Adrenaline kicked in, and two flashes quickly revealed Azura and Absol, the fearsome aces of Milo and Marcus.

"SHOOT BACK!" Milo yelled to the other three as he leapt into action. Springing to his feet, he immediately began firing powerful spheres of Dark Aura into the trees from whence the blast had come. Standing back to back in a rough diamond, Marcus and the two Pokémon joined in, firing indiscriminate attacks in every direction to deflect the Dark Aura attacks now peppering them from all around.

"We're blown!" A voice yelled from the trees, "Target alerted, mission failed! Abort, ABORT! Get out of here, we're gone!"

As suddenly as the frightening episode had started, all activity ceased in a heartbeat.

Even the breeze stopped.

Only the heavy breathing of the brothers and their Pokémon broke the eerie silence.

Eventually, Milo spoke;

"What...just happened?"

"I don't know," said Marcus, his voice low, his eyes darting this way and that, "But we need to get back to the city. Now."

With a nod, Milo took off running back towards the gates of Jubilife, with Azura, Marcus and Absol not far behind. The group slowed upon reaching the safety of the city, and the brothers returned their Pokémon to avoid drawing attention.

Not until they got back to Milo's hotel suite did they stop and begin processing the ambush they had just survived. Once again, Milo spoke first, his tone harsh, anger visible on his face;

"Well, _Shadow Master_ Marcus? Want to tell me who the hell just attacked us?"

"I'll tell you what I know," Marcus answered quickly, attempting to placate his younger brother, "Even if it's not much."

Mere months after Milo's dramatic victory in the Lily of the Valley Conference at the end of his Rookie season, Marcus and the other members of the Order of Shadows Inner Circle had joined forces to overthrow Karen and put Marcus in her place as Shadow Master.

Since his installment as the head of the secretive organization, Marcus had implemented several reforms. The Order now worked much more closely with high-ranking members of the police force in every region in which they operated. Most importantly, information no longer came at a premium – every member had a way to contact Marcus directly, should the need arise, and he regularly disseminated intelligence and plans to the entire organization. This access to information had drastically improved the Order's reaction time to potential threats and prevented unnecessary risks to individual members. Now, Shadow Master Marcus sank wearily onto Milo's couch as he explained what he could about the thwarted surprise attack;

"Over the past few months, we've heard some weird rumors. Barely even that, more like rumors of rumors – the kind of things drunken thugs tell one another over their last couple drinks."

"Cut to the chase, Marcus." Milo, quite understandably, didn't have much patience for his brother's careful language.

Marcus leaned back, running an anxious hand through his hair;

"It's hard to make anything out. I honestly thought nothing of it. The only reason I remember it at all is that these whispers seemed oddly more consistent than the usual hearsay. They all point to _something_ that's been acting up – some new group that the rest of the underworld doesn't recognize."

"Does this group have a name? What makes you think this was them?"

"The rumors converge on exactly one detail – Dark powers. Whoever this new group is, they can use what seems to be Dark Aura, though they're completely separate from our Order."

Milo blinked.

"That's...unsettling. Very unsettling."

With a wry chuckle, Marcus agreed;

"Yeah, don't you just feel _super_ comfortable with some other Dark Order running around? Especially now that they've proven they can get to us."

This remark set the gears spinning in Milo's head;

"How _did_ they get to us?"

"That's what worries me most. I don't know. If they got to us, specifically us, then they know who we are. They know our Order from the inside. If they know that much, it's a safe bet they know a lot more. You see what I'm getting at, Milo?"

The younger brother nodded grimly;

"If they can put a hit on you and me, they can get to anyone. Kara, Dee, Martin, Myrian, Mom and Dad...We need to deal with this, Marcus. _You_ need to deal with this. Fast."

"I'll do everything I can."

That just about settled the matter. The brothers had nothing more to gain from discussing between them, so Marcus went off and began making calls to this person and that person, frantically trying to determine something about the surprise attack.

Milo, meanwhile, made the first call that came to his mind.

"Kara?"

Even the sound of her bright voice never failed to put him more at ease;

"Hey, Milo! Great to hear from you! Is Marcus there still? How goes the 'brother time'?"

"Well, unfortunately that's on hold for now. I need to tell you what just happened to us…"

 **Kara**

She lay back on her bed in shock as Milo recounted the ambush on Route 203. She said nothing, laying wide-eyed in her room and listening to the frightening story. Finally, when Milo fell silent, she took a breath and offered her initial thoughts;

"I...I can't believe...I'm just so glad you two are safe, first off. But whoa, that's so scary, Milo. What is Marcus going to do about it?"

"Everything he can," answered Milo immediately, "Or I'll kick his butt. Look, Kara, I'm not trying to freak you out, but I just need you to keep an extra eye out for a while, okay? Probably refrain from going off alone. If these people, whoever they are, know how to get to me and Marcus, chances are they know quite a bit more. I doubt you'll be in any real danger, but...just stay on alert, okay?"

"Okay," answered Kara in a small voice. It wasn't the first time Milo advised her to exercise caution, but...she could never quite adjust to the sinking feeling of not trusting her surroundings.

"Thank you," said his comforting voice with a sigh, "Anyway, enough with the heavy stuff. How's Floaroma? Your team showing well?"

"Totally," laughed the Performer, quite glad to switch to a lighter discussion topic, "You were right, Zexon's been an absolute machine."

Curled up on her bed talking to her boyfriend on the phone, the young woman felt like a schoolgirl talking to her crush, a thought that elicited a silly giggle as she recounted her surprise appearance at the Floaroma Qualifier.

 **Earlier that day**

From the instant she stepped out onto Floaroma's only battle park, near the outskirts of the peaceful town, Kara heard the cheers and shocked murmuring sweep through the small crowd in attendance.

 _Just wait_ , she smirked to herself, _Once they see my team in action they'll really have something to talk about._

She had the same team as always – Kara never felt any need to expand beyond her six loyal Pokémon, the same six who'd joined her all those years ago.

Sure enough, each of her Pokémon had more than enough strength to dispatch the local amateurs – Floaroma's claim to fame was never the strength of its Trainers, and her team had spent years training alongside Milo's world famous Big Six.

Inevitably, a reporter tracked her down as she waited for her last battle of the day, and asked the expected questions;

"What are you hoping to accomplish by entering this year's World Challenge, Kara?"

"Honestly," she flashed the woman her trademark grin, "I'm mostly hoping to see how far I can go, out of curiosity more than anything else. Also, I suppose this is my chance to show the world, or at least the region, that we Performers are more than capable of holding our own on the battlefield, too."

"I see. So we shouldn't expect any kind of long-term transition from one of the all-time greats of the Performer world?"

"Why thank you, but certainly I'm not planning any kind of 'long-term transition' to battling. This is just a welcome change of pace for my team and me."

"Well, your change of pace is sweeping through Floaroma like a tidal wave. How much does your close relationship with Milo have to do with the overwhelming power of your Pokémon?"

That brought a genuine laugh from the young woman, "Hah! I'll choose to take that as a compliment to my team's power and not an insult to my own abilities. Yes, it's no secret that my team trains with the Big Six, so they've got quite a bit of experience, at least in theory, with high-level battling."

"What does that mean for your chances at advancing in the World Challenge? How far do you plan to keep going?"

"I mean, I'll keep going until I lose, if that's what you mean. As far as my expectations...I think it'd be cool to be the first professional Performer to appear in the Sinnoh Finals. Anything beyond that would be a bonus."

"I see. Thanks for your time!"

As the reporter scurried away, more than satisfied with her answers, Kara looked up to find that her final battle of the day had almost arrived.

Her opponent, a girl who had no more than a couple years of experience, glumly shook her hand.

"Best of luck!" Kara tried to look encouraging, but the girl just nodded, her head down.

"Sure, thanks."

The entry-level matchups in Floaroma were 3-on-3 battles, and Kara got straight to business;

"Pyro, start us off!"

"Uh...Glameow!"

Kara's proud Rapidash emerged with a ferocious cry that served to further intimidate the already less-than-confident Glameow and its Trainer.

"Open with a Sunny Day, Pyro!"

"Glameow, he's vulnerable...Try a Scratch."

Scratch was not even remotely close to the correct call – Rapidash had some of the world's highest natural speed, and Pyro completed his Sunny Day with plenty of time for Kara's counterattack play.

"Meet him with Stomp, Pyro."

Almost disdainfully, the Fire type stuffed his tough hooves into the face of the oncoming Catty Pokémon, who fell head over heels backwards with a pained cry.

"Dang it! Umm, Glameow, get up and use Water Pulse!"

 _That's a better idea_ , Kara grinned ruefully to herself, _But Sunny Day already weakened Water type moves, plus I know how to counter them anyway._

Seeing that Glameow didn't have much left in the tank, and in an effort to win as politely as possible, Kara stuck to basics;

"Pyro, cut that attack off with Ember!"

Sure enough, the simple fire move, executed smoothly by her experienced battler and boosted by Sunny Day, was more than enough for Glameow to stay down.

As her opponent recalled her fallen Normal type, Kara decided for no particular reason to make a change of her own.

"Wormadam, you're up next."

"Pyro, return. Zexon, keep us going!"

The Bagworm Pokémon would actually have been ideal for Pyro to continue, since its Trash Cloak form had the same typing as Kara's Scizor, but it didn't much matter. Kara never even bothered instructing her Pincer Pokémon on the field anymore, so imperious was he in the midst of a fight. True, all of her Pokémon had become quite tough while training with Milo's living legend of a team, but Zexon carried the team when it came to battling. He took his training much more seriously, and could even land a hit on some of Milo's battle-hardened fighters, if they weren't paying attention.

Knowing this could quickly get embarrassing if she didn't mitigate his seriousness, Kara warned her Steel type;

"Nothing crazy, Zexon. Just go get the win."

With a heavy sigh, Kara's opponent decided to at least pretend that her poor Bug stood a chance;

"Confusion, Wormadam."

 _If she would have waited_ , thought Kara, _that would have been a great reaction move. But she gave Zexon the first chance to counter, and now it's over. Five seconds, tops._

Sure enough, the ruthless Scizor disappeared into a Double Team, culminating in an Acrobatics that sent his unfortunate opponent flying in an almost comically helpless arc through the air. Just before the Trash Cloak Wormadam hit the ground, the lightning-fast Zexon smashed cleanly through it with a follow up Night Slash, ending the round.

 _Yeah...That was probably too much_ , thought the Performer, _I'll back off a bit._

"Shieldon, you're up last!"

 _Then again…_

Kara's inner mischievous streak came poking out, and she came up with a rather show-off-ish plan to close out the day's battling.

"Verdante, let's do this with style!"

A few murmurs went around the onlookers. A Grass type? Against a half-Steel type? It felt...irresponsible. Kara, however, knew her way around a fight better than most people gave her credit for.

"Lead with Grass Whistle, girl!"

The aesthetically pleasing Grass Whistle generally had poor accuracy when used on a particular target, but in a battle as one-sided as this one, Kara could afford a little risk for the sake of being flashy. Luckily, the move hit perfectly, and the little Shield Pokémon became a sitting (or rather, sleeping) Ducklett in the middle of the field.

"Charge up and end this, Verdante!"

Kara's opponent could only watch in dismay as the brilliant light of a very potent Solarbeam built and built until it crashed into her last Pokémon. When the dust cleared, the referee irrelevantly declared the battle over in Kara's favor.

 **End Flashback**

"So yeah, I managed to grab a spot! They made a big deal out of giving me my official invitation to the Eterna Crunch."

"Nice!" Milo offered an encouraging grin, "That means you're one win away from becoming the first ever professional Performer to reach the Sinnoh Finals!"

"I'll see you there," she replied with a wink, "But for now I have to go. I have an early start tomorrow."

As she hung up, Kara heard her mother's voice from downstairs;

"Kara? Kara dear, you need to come down and see this!"

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Well, it turns out I'm still around. Sorry, I didn't mean to go on hiatus, but life happened. Also I vastly underestimated how exhausted I'd be after the end of Blue Umbreon and the beginning of Big Six. But hey, I'm back! No promises on timing, but I'll keep chugging on this story, as time allows. Most of the structure and planning work is already done for Big Six, so it should be much less draining, just writing out what I have planned.**

 **Speaking of pre-planning, if you're sad about not seeing the dramatic revolt against Karen, I apologize. It just didn't fit into the timeline, which is already quite full (you should see my color-coded 13-page outline for this story). Essentially, I didn't want to force it. I'm not opposed to writing it out as a separate Milo-verse one-shot, though. If you'd like to see that, you have only to let me know via review or PM, and I'll at least consider it.**

 **One concern I have about this story as a whole; there will be a LOT of battles, on and off the official battlefield. The whole story will be about as action-packed as the last few chapters of Blue Umbreon. It'll be my biggest challenge yet with this series to keep things fresh and interesting while still doing justice to all the tournaments, battles, and events that are coming up. I need your help with this! Call out anything that feels off so I know what's working and what's not! As always, my sincerest thanks to you, my dear readers.**

 **-Nano**


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